


All It Takes is Time

by avadedrahetarra



Category: Japanese Rock, Jrock, the GazettE
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-17
Updated: 2014-11-17
Packaged: 2018-02-25 17:49:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2630813
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/avadedrahetarra/pseuds/avadedrahetarra
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Reita’s watched Uruha’s life go from bad to worse since they were children together. Now, he’s determined to save his best friend’s life, even if it means admitting to something he’s known for years.</p>
            </blockquote>





	All It Takes is Time

_Age 7 (1986)_  
"Hey Kouyou! Come shoot with me! Coach says we should practice, right?" The boy smiled at his teammate from the end of the walkway leading to the porch.  
"I can't, Akira." Kouyou looked ready to cry, watching as his friend dribbled in a tight circle. "My dad says I have to stay home today." A crash and the sound of crying resounded from within the house, making the young boy flinch. "I have to go now. I'll see you Saturday."  
Kouyou slipped back into the house. Scooping the soccer ball into his arms, Akira frowned at the door.

_Age 12 (1991)_  
"Does it hurt?"  
Kouyou examined the heavy cast on his arm. "A little."  
"What happened?" Akira looked concerned as he signed it.  
"I… I fell," Kouyou muttered, staring blankly at the other kids running drills on the field.  
"Really?"  
"Yeah, really."  
The coach called Akira away then, giving Kouyou time to wipe away his tears.

_Age 13 (1992)_  
"I'm sorry, Akira. Kouyou's sick. He can't come out today."  
Akira stared up at Kouyou's mother, noting with an adult-like observance the redness of her eyes and the dark circles around them. She looked suddenly very old, even though she wasn't.  
"Okay," he said. "Tell him I came by, please, and I'll see him Monday."  
She smiled sadly and closed the door. Akira turned away, shaking with rage. Kouyou had been standing in the hall behind his mother. He had seen the large band aid on his forehead and his swollen lip. Kouyou wasn't sick, he'd been beaten again.  
Akira wasn't sure how much more he could take.

_Age 16 (1995)_  
"Kouyou, we shouldn't be out here."  
Akira edged back toward his bedroom window. Kouyou cast him a sidelong glance before slithering further in the other direction.  
"Pussy," he sneered, only half teasing his friend.  
"If my dad catches us…" Akira started.  
"Ha!" Kouyou barked out, his eyes suddenly manic. "Your dad's small time compared to what mine would do if he…" The boy fell silent, his eyes watering.  
"Still?" Akira asked softly, suddenly forgetting that they were on the roof of his house.  
"Yeah. When will it end, Aki?"

_Age 18 (1997)_  
"Tokyo? Why Tokyo?"  
Kouyou looked up from the computer screen, rolling his eyes.  
"Because I've never been," he said, dropping his gaze back to the map he was studying. "Besides, we'll never get famous if we stay here, Reita."  
Akira shook his head. Kouyou's obsession with stage names had been getting worse since their band had played at a school dance. His obsession with Tokyo had started a few days ago when his father had finally thrown him out and he'd ended up at Akira's door.  
"I can't do it without you, Rei." Kouyou's voice and expression were pleading. "Say you'll come?"  
"Alright. Sure."  
Kouyou smiled. "Excellent! It'll be great!"  
 _"Someone's gotta keep you out of trouble,"_ Akira thought miserably.

_Age 20 (1999)_  
"What the hell do you mean 'it was an accident'? He HIT you, Kouyou!"  
The man in question was leaning close to the bathroom mirror, applying a copious amount of concealer to a wicked bruise beneath his left eye. At the sound of his birth name, Kouyou glared at Akira's reflection.  
"Don't call me that, Rei. Ever."  
"Fine. Uruha. But that doesn't change what I said. He hit you. For no reason."  
Kouyou continued to glare at his own reflection, twitching the bangs of his dark hair around a little.   
"I've been hit before, Rei. It's not like I'm not used to it. Besides, like I said, he didn't mean it."  
"Oh, like fuck he didn't!" Akira was losing his temper. "Just like the last time, right? Or the time before? What about the asshole before him?"  
Kouyou's palm slammed down on the countertop, the sound loud in the small room. His expression was venomous.   
"It's my life!" he screamed. "Mine! You're not my father!"  
"No," Akira snapped back. "I'm not an abusive bastard. When you're ready to think straight, you know where to find me."  
Akira left the bathroom and slammed his bedroom door.

_Age 21 (2000)_  
"For fuck's sake, Kouyou! What the hell?"  
Akira stood over Kouyou's collapsed form in the hallway of their shared apartment. The younger man was heaped against the wall, giggling in his drunken stupor. There was a stream of blood trickling from the cut above his right eye and his lip was swollen.  
"H-he gone?" Kouyou hiccupped.  
"Yes, and if you ever bring him back here, I'll be the one kicking your ass."  
Kouyou began to sob, the sounds wretched and broken in the silent apartment. Sighing, Akira shoved aside his anger and fetched a warm, wet cloth. Crouching down, he gently wiped the blood from his friends face.  
"When will this end, Kouyou?" he muttered under his breath. "When one of them finally kills you?"

_Age 23 (2002)_  
"To GazettE!"  
Akira grinned with his new band mates, clinking his glass against theirs. Next to him, Kouyou giggled wildly, his face relaxed and youthful. Across from him, Ruki, Aoi, and Yune smiled back. They'd just signed their first music deal and they were starting the process of recording their first single. Things couldn't have been greater for the five men.  
As the night progressed, Akira grew more and more uncomfortable with the amount of flirting going on between Kouyou and the drummer, Yune. The others didn't seem to notice, instead thinking it cute and funny. A few days later, it seemed the two were a hot item.  
"It's the same thing all over again!" Akira raged the first time he saw the bruises on Kouyou's skin. "Every time!"  
Kouyou didn't have the energy to fight. His body raged with pain. When his tears finally took over, Akira crawled onto the bed with him, whispering calm, soothing words. He held his friend as he cried, hating what he saw and wishing he had the guts to change it.

_Age 25 (2005)_  
Akira couldn't remember the last time he'd seen Kouyou dress up for a date. Sitting in the living room of Kouyou's apartment (they'd long since stopped sharing one), he twisted his rings on his fingers.   
Kouyou's face was haggard, worn. He looked tired beyond belief, but he dragged himself around, styling his hair and fixing his make-up. He'd shown off ten different outfits for Akira to comment on, then ended up back in the first thing he'd put on. He looked sick.  
"Kouyou, why don't you cancel tonight? You look about ready to drop."  
"I can't," Kouyou tied his boots on. "It would only upset him…"  
He stood and headed for the door. Akira moved quickly, pulling his best friend into a tight hug, feeling the weight the younger man had lost recently.  
"Why do you keep falling for guys like this?" he asked suddenly, unable to keep it in any longer.  
"Because I'm not good enough for anything else." Kouyou pushed away and turned away. "Lock up when you leave, would you?"  
Akira watched the front door close. "You're good enough for me."

_Age 27 (2008)_  
"Maybe we should cancel?"  
Akira glanced at Takanori, wincing. "No. That would make him feel worse."  
"Well, he can't play in that condition," Yutaka pointed out. "How's he going to lift his guitar with a sprained shoulder?"  
Akira made a frustrated sound in the back of his throat, making the other men around him back off a few steps. They didn't know Kouyou like he did. They never could.  
"I'll go talk to him."  
Leaving the others in the hallway, Akira slipped into Kouyou's hospital room, fighting the urge to gag on the sterile smell. He stopped next to the bed, taking his friends hand and dropping into a chair.  
"Hey. How are you?"  
Kouyou tried to smile. "I feel like I've been run over by a dump truck."  
"You might've faired better if it were that easy."  
Tears slid down Kouyou's face. "I'm so sorry. I'm such an idiot."  
"No," Akira brushed the tears away. "Not an idiot. Just blind."  
Kouyou shook his head. "Not blind either. Scared."  
"Kouyou…" Akira licked his lips, suddenly nervous. He'd waited years, and he hoped it wasn't too late to save Kouyou's heart. "Before you go running off to the next rotten bastard… the one who might likely kill you… consider me. I'm right here. I've always been right here. Right in front of you. See me for once. Please?"

_Age 28 (2009)_  
"Happy birthday, Akira."  
Akira looked up, grinning at the sight before him.   
"Who'd you con into helping you do that?" he asked, taking in the massive ruby colored ribbon that wound around Kouyou's body. The blonde laughed.  
"Yuu. I owe him a favor. Something about getting Takanori to go out with him just once or something. I wasn't paying attention."  
Akira laughed this time, moving forward toward his "gift." Kouyou blushed a little, suddenly shy. Akira's eyes roved over the perfect, unmarked body of the man before him, reveling that it had been well over a year since anyone had laid a hand on him in anger. The only hands that touched him now were those that loved and worshipped him.  
"Do you like it?" Kouyou whispered, turning in a circle.  
"I love it." He dragged the younger man into his arms. "I love you, too. And I'm so glad you're mine."  
Kouyou giggled, tweaking Akira's chin between his fingertips.  
"Less talking, more unwrapping, mister."  
Akira was more than happy to comply.


End file.
